Infographics – Fun to Look At, Fun to Learn With

Although many do not know them by name, infographics are becoming more and more prevalent on the web.  They are a unique blend of information, graphics, and visual organization that can impart information in a way that is engaging and easily understood.  Because pictures are processed much faster and effectively than words, infographics can be a powerful tool for just about every application.  For example, do you know how much data is moved on the internet worldwide in a typical minute?  Well, here is an infographic to show you!

One strength of the infographic is that their generation requires several skills.  The information needs to be there, of course, but composition also requires thinking about what types of graphics best supplement the text to pass on information to the reader.  Thorough research is needed to compile information and a solid understanding of the concept being described is essential.  For this reason, they make a great option for middle and high school students for projects, either individually or in groups.  Making an infographic requires demonstration of understanding and composition skills, but also allows for a creative components for a student to express their ideas and have fun while doing so.

One advantage of infographic projects is that there are many authoring tools available to make them for free.   Some applications have options to purchase subscriptions for extra content but this usually isn’t necessary.  Web-based generators such as Easel.ly, Infogr.am, and Piktochart are polished tools with intuitive interfaces and easy learning curves.  Here is an example of an infographic assignment on Phylum Porifera that was generated by a student:

As you can see, infographics are a neat way for students to show what they have learned about a subject.  These assignments can also have varying levels of difficulty, depending on the level of students involved.  When I assign infographics to freshmen level Biology or Earth Science classes, I usually provide them with some examples of where they can find information, and what kinds of graphics they should be using.  I will require maybe 3 to 4 facts, 2 or 3 graphics, and some decorations to make them look pleasing.  For my upper level classes, I show them a few examples and send them to dailyinfographic.com for inspiration, and that’s it, they are on their own.  Depending on the difficulty of the subject matter, infographics can be assigned to individuals or groups.  Small diagrams are good for individuals, where more detailed subject matter is fit for group work.  Perhaps my favorite part of assigning infographics as groups is it brings out desire in my artistic students that may struggle in more academic classes.  These students get really involved with projects like this and the results are often fantastic.   It gets them far more engaged than a short paragraph or PowerPoint slide ever would.

Infographics as assignments check a lot of boxes of effective lessons.  They allow students to be artistic and visual, there are almost countless ways to differentiate them to accommodate a wide range of students, and when assigned as groups they build teamwork and collaboration skills in students that can often lead to excellent products which demonstrate mastery of subject matter.